Konoha Drunkard

In the Hokage's office in Konoha, the four giants of Konoha and a group of Jonin, along with the clan heads, were all present. Upon seeing Danzo's image, they all lowered their heads and shoulders and were playing TikTok!

"Hahaha! Orochimaru's snake is too awesome! It actually knocked down the Raikage twice!" When Hiruzen Sarutobi mentioned the information about the Land of Lightning, Shanks slapped the table and laughed without any regard for his image.

"That's not what we're discussing today!" The group of ninjas around him were speechless!

"Ahem! The Hyuga clan head used a clan secret technique to break the Raikage's Lightning Release mode, and ultimately died from the loss of his life force! Please accept my condolences, Elder Hyuga." Hiruzen Sarutobi finished speaking and looked at the Hyuga clan's eldest elder.

"Ah! Thank you, Hokage! The clan leader died a worthy death." The Hyuga elder's eyes were a little moist. He had told Hyuga that he was prepared to die in battle before Hyuga left in the air.

"Pfft! Holy crap! The Hyuga clan leader is too awesome! He actually managed to break through the Raikage's defense! Elder Hyuga, tell us what secret technique the Hyuga clan leader used that's so powerful!" Shanks also cooperated with the already deceased Hyuga clan leader, giving him a good shout-out. The two had been praising each other for so many years, so they still had a good relationship, and he was also very curious about what kind of secret technique the Hyuga clan had that was so amazing.

Elder Hyuga noticed everyone looking at him and glanced at Shanks with surprise. He hadn't expected the unreliable Konoha red-haired man to be so cooperative. "It's not a secret. It's a forbidden technique passed down in our clan, consisting of sixty-four strikes. The power increases with each strike, but the life force is also lost. However, even the clan leader can only learn thirty-six strikes."

"As expected of a powerful family! Sakumo, does your family have any secret techniques passed down through generations?" Shanks exclaimed in admiration and asked his best friend in a low voice.

"No, there aren't many powerful secret techniques at all. During the Warring States period, only three or four families possessed them." His best friend looked down on this illiterate man.

"I thought you rich families would hold back a few tricks up your sleeves." Shanks ignored his disdainful look and muttered to himself, "How would I know if Kishimoto didn't draw it? Besides, Kishimoto only drew you as a minor character. Your son is a coward, and he can only use your family's swordsmanship to kill genin. How would I know? The bloodline left by Kaguya is indeed extraordinary."

While Shanks was secretly complaining, the surrounding ninjas were also marveling at the power of the Hyuga clan's secret technique. Although it would kill them if they used it, it was only thirty-six palms that were enough to break through the Raikage's defense.

"Ahem! The reason I've called you all here for this meeting is to discuss peace talks. The Raikage of Kumogakure is coming in person to negotiate. Shanks, you'll go to the border to meet him then," Hiruzen Sarutobi interrupted them.

"That's no problem, but... what do you want him to compensate you with? The Iwa ninja give stones, the Suna ninja give sand, you don't really want the Kumo ninja's mountains, do you?" Shanks laughed as he said this, realizing that everyone in the ninja world was a genius.

"Hmph! This is a meeting! Be serious!" Konoha's Roots showed off their presence.

"Hey, hey! Danzo, you haven't finished eating the sausage in your mouth yet? It's been several days, can you still eat it?" Shanks looked at Danzo in surprise.

"..." The ninjas began to lower their heads and tremble again, this time even the three giants of Konoha were shaking.

Danzo's face darkened, and he slammed the door shut in one swift motion. "You can open it! I'm not feeling well, I'm going back to rest!"

"Ah! It's so good to have someone protecting you! It's a pity that the people who protected me back then are already in the graveyard!" Shanks glanced at Hiruzen Sarutobi and pretended to sigh as he looked towards the Hokage Rock.

"Hahahaha!" Tsunade couldn't hold back any longer and burst into laughter, slamming her hand on the table with an air of domineering power!

The three giants of Konoha were speechless, and really wanted to throw the two of them out.

"Alright, enough fooling around, let's get down to business!" Koharu Utatane, the former flower of Konoha, glared at Shanks and said.

As his wife's teacher, Shanks had to give her face, since they'd be on the same side in the future. So Shanks and Tsunade went off to wander into the void.

"I think Shanks should negotiate with the Raikage this time. After all, the Raikage's personality is too fiery," the big-shot cannon said tactfully. His meaning was clear: don't ask the Cloud Ninja for compensation. The Raikage is already being generous by not exploding his power when he sees Hiruzen Sarutobi! Besides, Konoha is short of resources.

The three leaders exchanged a glance, nodded in agreement after confirming each other's understanding. Hiruzen Sarutobi, in particular, couldn't wait for the Raikage to sign the peace treaty and leave. He was still trembling with fear in Konoha; if a war broke out there, Konoha's losses would far outweigh the compensation they would receive. Hiruzen didn't even want the compensation from the other two villages; he only wanted peace. But that was clearly impossible; even if he didn't want it, the other clans would.

As for Konoha's losses on the Cloud Ninja battlefield, they can only be covered by Konoha's own funds. It's all because he angered the Raikage; the Raikage was just fighting and drinking with Shanks, nothing more. If he had sent Sakumo Hatake instead, it would have been fine, but he chose a weakling. Not every strong person is as undignified as Shanks.

.........

After the Land of Lightning War ended, Orochimaru led his ninjas back to Konoha, and Shanks was relieved, knowing that Kishimoto wouldn't kill off Nawaki again. During the war, Shanks used his Observation Haki daily to check if Nawaki was still alive. The war ended, and Nawaki was still alive and well, living a carefree life. It seemed Kishimoto had temporarily forgotten about him.

Today, Shanks, along with Big Mom and the others, arrived at the village entrance to welcome the heroes returning from the battlefield of the Land of Lightning. The entire Hyuga clan was present to receive the remains of their greatest clan leader since the founding of Konoha! Now, who in the ninja world doesn't know that the Hyuga clan possesses the strongest taijutsu, capable of sealing not only the Raikage's chakra but also breaking through his defenses with their final powerful forbidden technique?

“Cheer up! Your father has been able to fulfill his dream, you should be happy for him!” Shanks said, looking at the twins beside him whose eyes were turning red.

"I understand, teacher!" The two nodded, but it was no use; they still cried when they wanted to.

Looking at the tens of thousands of people who returned, Shanks was filled with admiration for Danzo, the Root of Konoha and a friend of villains. In the Land of Lightning battlefield, Konoha had received over 25,000 complaints, while Kumogakure only received over 10,000. Yet, nearly 10,000 of them were used by Danzo in this battle – he was practically a professional spy!

153. This is all Danzo's fault for "asking to subscribe"

"Hey, why the long face, Shinku? You're about to become a father-in-law! Do you know Kakashi's talent is amazing? He could already gather chakra when he was only a few months old!" Shanks exclaimed, seeing Shinku holding his daughter in the crowd with a worried expression, and eagerly gave his friend a shout-out.

The people around him scoffed at him, "Gathering chakra in just a few months? Aren't you afraid he'll die young? If you're going to brag, at least make it believable!"

"..." Sakumo Hatake stood to the side, gazing at the sky, too lazy to pay attention to what he was saying.

"It's broken, I'm just a little sad." But this time, Yuhi Shinku ignored his boasting and said while holding her daughter.

"Sigh! My condolences, that's how war is!" Shanks felt a pang of regret. He had hoped that Kato Dan and Tsunade could rekindle their romance, but it seemed that Nawaki hadn't died. Because of him, the course of the war between Iwa and Kumo had changed somewhat. Nawaki was alive, Tsunade hadn't brought up the issue of having medical ninjas in the squads, and Kato Dan hadn't had a chance to flirt with girls in the Land of Lightning. So! In the end, it was all Nawaki's fault. Why didn't he die? It's all Nawaki's fault!

"Father, Red is so cute!" Big Mom, one of the Four Emperors, was hugging Kakashi. His wife was becoming more and more like a housewife, which gave Shanks a headache.

"Of course! Back then, I was after your Uncle Red's contact lenses. Even though you were a disappointment, otherwise Red would have been your wife! In the end, Kakashi got the better deal!" Shanks pinched Kakashi's wife's cheek.

"What! How can you blame me for this!" Big Mom rolled her eyes at her father and complained.

"..." Everyone covered their foreheads; this person was beyond saving, and they were still worried about him.

Kurenai Yuhi, still reeling from the loss of her teammate, was speechless upon hearing this.

Tsunade barely managed to punch him on the head, then patted Big Mom's hair to comfort her.

The group ignored Shanks and continued chatting and catching up with the returning ninjas.

"Orochimaru! You really pulled it off this time, releasing snakes at the Raikage twice, and both times the snakes were poisoned! Tell me about the Raikage's expression then!" Shanks said to Orochimaru, imagining his own expression at the time, finding it thrilling just thinking about it.

"Heh, Captain, you should ask the Raikage about that," Orochimaru said, seemingly oblivious to the fact that the man was contemplating the meaning of life.

The next day, Konoha laid the graves of the heroes who died on the battlefield. This time, Hiruzen Sarutobi gave a speech at the graves, and his vivid words moved a group of people to tears. Shanks once again witnessed the power of words, which could be compared to his own "Big Mouth Technique".

Just as Shanks was about to leave the cemetery, he saw Grandma Chiyo watching from a short distance away. She even waved to Shanks when she saw him come out.

"How's Aunt Chiyo's talk? Our Hokage's eloquence is pretty good, isn't it? Much better than that bastard Salai from yours," Shanks said as he approached.

"Ah, Hiruzen Sarutobi is becoming more and more like a politician, but that only suits your Konoha, not us Sunagakure," Grandma Chiyo said, looking in the direction of the cemetery.

"Who told him to have so many heroes!" Shanks said, patting his shoulder.

"Sigh! So many people have died in this war, more than during the Warring States period. Do you think what Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha did was right or wrong?" Grandma Chiyo sighed and asked Shanks.

"I don't know about that, I've never seen what it was like during the Warring States period. But I've heard that during the Warring States period, children had to go to the battlefield to be killed, at least now those children don't have to go to the battlefield," Shanks said, taking a sip from a bottle of wine.

Grandma Chiyo didn't say anything after hearing this, she just kept staring at the cemetery. Shanks wondered if she was also pretending to see through Sakumo Hatake inside the cemetery.

A few days later, Shanks, along with the larger Ino-Shika-Cho trio and a group of Anbu, went to the border to wait for the Raikage. This Raikage was quite a big shot; Hiruzen Sarutobi had arranged for fifty Anbu, plus the larger Ino-Shika-Cho trio and Shanks, to welcome them.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was a sensible man. He knew that the Raikage was proud and concerned about his image. He was definitely unhappy that his own number one had released snakes twice on the battlefield. If he didn't give him some face, Konoha would suffer a huge loss if the Raikage suddenly unleashed his full power when he came to Konoha.

After waiting for two days, a group of Cloud Ninja arrived at the border. Shanks estimated there were at least five hundred of them. "This old Raikage really has a lot of influence, almost as much as the former Hyuga clan leader!"

"Yo! Raikage! Long time no see, how are you doing?" Shanks teased the Raikage and the Azabu brothers as he saw the three people in front of the Cloud Ninja.

"Hmph! You bastard! Why didn't you tell me about the replacement, Danzo!" The Raikage exploded in anger upon seeing Shanks, unleashing a torrent of abuse! He had lost face big time this time. Although he was the head of the Hyuga clan, the ninja world didn't care. What mattered was that he, one of the toughest men in the ninja world, had been released by snakes twice. His reputation was definitely a step below Shanks'.

"Haha! I didn't know either. Our Hokage only notified me to change the person. I also thought it was Sakumo. After all, there are only a few people in the whole of Konoha who can stop you! I was kicked out when Danzo went, so I couldn't notify you at all!" Shanks put his arm around the Raikage's shoulder and quickly comforted his wounded heart.

"And as you saw, our Hokage gave you so much face, sending me instead of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, plus fifty Anbu members. This is a privilege that no one else receives!" Shanks pressed his advantage.

"Hmph! Ino-Shika-Cho still has some value, but what are these fifty people?" The old Raikage looked at the fifty Anbu with disdain. These fifty Anbu almost went berserk, but luckily they knew that the other party was looking at peace talks, so they held back.

"Don't say that, give me some face, I'll cover the cost of those 500 dragons when we get back to Konoha!" Shanks patted his chest and said generously, but his heart was bleeding inside. These 500 James's, how much money will that cost! But he felt a little better when he thought of the two cartloads of gifts that the Iwagakure leader Aoki Nozomi had just sent two days ago.

"Hmph! I'm giving you face this time! But I'm here to have a drink with you. Let Pocket and Ninety-something handle the negotiations!" Old Man Lei Ying retorted.

"Haha! That's perfect. We can negotiate with Brother Shiro. I'll take charge of this negotiation!" Shanks said, raising an eyebrow at the giant rocket launcher. He had actually asked Hiruzen Sarutobi for the giant rocket launcher. Letting him negotiate with the two Azabu brothers? That would be too much of a brain drain. It's better to let smart people negotiate with smart people.

"Sigh!" Big Cannon sighed inwardly, having originally intended to slack off.

A few days later, Shanks and the Cloud Ninja arrived at the village entrance. The three giants of Konoha and all the members of the Red Flower Double Staff were there. This was quite a show of force! The Raikage's expression had improved somewhat when he saw Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Afterwards, Hiruzen Sarutobi, like a tour guide, cheerfully introduced the various sights of Konoha to the Raikage, observing the Raikage's expression along the way and secretly sighing. "What a straightforward guy! He ruined the relationship with Konoha!" Thinking of this, his sausage-lipped best friend flashed into his mind, and he felt a surge of anger. "It's all Danzo's fault!"

154. Negotiation expert Shanks "requests subscription"

After Hiruzen Sarutobi brought the Raikage into Konoha, he arranged for them to stay. Since the Raikage had brought 500 people with him, arranging accommodations was a hassle. Shanks thought the Raikage was probably just trying to eat him alive. Did he really need bodyguards? Who would be whose bodyguards was still a mystery.

Negotiations resumed the following day, but this time they were divided into two sessions. One session took place in the Hokage's office, where the three giants of Konoha and the giants of Iwagakure, plus Chiyo, were arguing. The other session took place on Senju clan grounds, where the large-sized Skyrocket, along with the small-sized Skyrocket and the two Azabu brothers, were drinking and negotiating!

The reason Big Cannon brought Little Cannon along was to teach him how to negotiate. After all, Little Cannon will become a strategist in the future, so it's good to give him some experience now.

but..

A group of idle ninjas have gathered in the Senju clan's territory to watch, with some Uzumaki clan members and some Konoha ninjas constantly serving drinks to the thousand or so people in the middle! It's only because Shanks has such a strong foundation that he's already drunk himself into poverty.

"Shikaku, are you alright? Get up!" Shanks was clearly not giving the little guy a chance to learn how to negotiate! The two sides called it a negotiation, but it was really just a drinking contest.

Team Raikage, with over 500 members, lost and agreed to Konoha's compensation. Team Shanks, also with over 500 members, lost, but Konoha refused compensation! Shanks gathered everyone he knew and even went to Hiruzen Sarutobi to ask for over 400 more. The younger team only had two members, Minato and a small-time "Skyrocket," while Nawaki, who got carried away after a couple of drinks, could only watch from the sidelines. Minato was Team Shanks' winning weapon, a man who could drink alcohol like it was a beverage.

This time, Xiao Hao was no longer as cunning as before; he got genuinely drunk for the sake of the village's interests.

"Brother Lu Yi, your son is no good. He's already done after only a few bottles. He needs more practice! Look at Minato, he's practically a god of wine!" Shanks said to Big Skyrocket, his face flushed and reeking of alcohol.

"That's right, Shikaku! Get up and keep drinking!" Even the big-shot cannon was getting tipsy, showing an excitement that the Nara clan had never seen before!

"Huff! Uncle, we're running out of wine in the cellar!" Rope Tree ran over, drenched in sweat and panting.

"Go ask Yusa in the Hatake clan where the wine cellar is! Raikage, let me tell you. Don't underestimate the Hatake clan just because they don't have many people. Their wine collection is absolutely top-notch. It's not available on the market right now. It's only because you came that I got to drink it!" Shanks finally had a legitimate reason to drink the Hatake clan's wine. Hatake Sakumo rolled his eyes. He had a feeling that his family's wine collection would be empty after today.

"Hahaha! Good! Let's keep drinking!" Raikage laughed loudly, reeking of alcohol.

While they were drinking heavily, the bigwigs in the Hokage's office were still locked in a tug-of-war, with all three sides waiting for Shanks's outcome.

By the middle of the night, the battle situation was revealed: more than a thousand members of the Senju clan were lying prone, while only one person stood smiling on the battlefield.

"Brother Minato is amazing! My father is down, but you're completely unharmed!" Big Mom was stunned to see Minato the only one on the battlefield who was smiling and completely unscathed. His father was a drunkard!

"Haha! I think it tastes pretty good!" Minato scratched his head sheepishly when he saw the people around him staring at him in astonishment.

"Uncle's choice of someone for Kushina is truly amazing!" Nawaki, having just carried Tsunade back into the house, looked at Minato with an expression of pure admiration.

Kushina proudly held Minato's hand, as if to say, "See? This is my man!"

In the Hokage's office, an Anbu member appeared before the major leaders. "Hokage, the negotiations are over. The Cloud Ninja camp will compensate Konoha for half of its losses on the battlefield in the Land of Lightning. However... the Raikage will have to wait a few more days to sign the peace agreement."

"Oh? Why do we have to wait a few more days?" Aoki Nozomi, the leader of the Iwa ninja, asked curiously. He didn't want to stay in Konoha for even a moment longer. He had been avoiding Shanks for the past few days, afraid of another "chance encounter" with Shanks. If it weren't for the negotiations, he would have left long ago. Now that the Cloud ninja had finished their negotiations, he would have nothing to do after he took the agreement back to Onoki. Why did he have to wait a few more days?

"Well... because the Raikage is drunk, he probably won't wake up for another two days." The Anbu looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi and only spoke after Hiruzen nodded.

"Drunk? Weren't they negotiating?" asked Nozomi Aoki, the leader of the Iwa ninja clan, puzzled.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyelids twitched as he explained, "Ah, Shanks and the Raikage negotiated by drinking contest, and it seems the Cloud Ninja lost!"

"Pfft!" Iwagakure leaders Aoki Nozomi and Kaizo simultaneously spat out the tea they had just drunk! Is this negotiation just a drinking contest? Is this some kind of child's game? If this is how it's done, why have they been staying in Konoha for so long!

Especially Aoki Nozomi, if he had known this outcome, he would have dragged his men to drink with Konoha's Shanks a long time ago. They could have accepted the 50/50 loss anyway. So why the hell was he still in Konoha? Was he just waiting to be ripped off by Shanks? The thought of those two carriages being ripped off made his heart bleed.

Grandma Chiyo was much calmer. She was used to Shanks' thought process. Nothing he did was surprising. He had turned the battlefield into a drinking party, so it wasn't so strange that he would turn the negotiation venue into a drinking table.

Haizang secretly shook his head. This Konoha Shanks was practically a negotiation expert! What others couldn't accomplish in so long, he settled in one drinking session. At the same time, he admired the audacity of Konoha's high-ranking officials; they let him mess around with such an important matter. If it were him, he would have had a stroke.

If Hiruzen Sarutobi knew what Kaizo was thinking, he would definitely be moved to tears, tightly gripping Kaizo's hand and saying, "My confidant! Now you finally know how I've survived all these years!"